


Look At Me Like That

by RedEris



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-08
Updated: 2020-04-08
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:09:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23546668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedEris/pseuds/RedEris
Summary: Having been captured, John and Rodney pass time with an argument as usual. This one, though, explores just what exactly John's powers of attraction are--and crosses over into delicate territory.
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Comments: 3
Kudos: 113





	Look At Me Like That

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place in the Season Four timeframe.

“Just hang in there. You got the message out, all we have to do now is wait.” John stretched, trying to find a comfortable position against the cell wall.

“You mean just lie here and bleed to death,” Rodney said.

“We’ve got you tied up. Just lie still and keep your heart rate down.”

“Right, alright then, I’ll just lie here calmly with a gut wound in a space pirate prison cell and calmly contemplate my imminent rescue by people who may or may not know I’m even here. Calmly.”

“Yyyep.”

*

"Why do women fall for you?"

Sheppard lifted his head and leveled a stare at Rodney. 

"No, I mean it! All these women, why do they all want to sleep with you? You don't even do anything, you don’t say anything! You’re not even--you’re--scruffy! And really well built and you do that thing with your mouth but basically you’re not that much better looking--"

"Just so we're clear, you're upset because occasionally someone wants to sleep with me? And that’s important here, now?"

"Occasionally! Someone! You're kidding, right? He's got to be kidding. You've slept with two! Not one, two Ascended beings--"

"Teer wasn't--"

"Oh yes, so sorry, minor technical details like whether she Ascended before or after you slept with her somehow obviate my point. Two Ascended beings, a--a princess, actually two if you count Harmony--” 

“Please, let’s _not_ count Harmony!” 

“I know, I know, but she still counts for people who _wanted_ to. Where was I? Oh-- Space Nomad commanders, I shudder to think how many Atlantis staff--at this point I'm surprised no Hive Queens have thrown themselves at your feet!"

"Ew."

"Yes, that's my point!"

John sighed. "Look, Rodney. I don’t know. Maybe you’re just so good at repelling women that you’re overestimating my prowess. I don’t do anything. Just sometimes consenting adults like having a good time. And aren’t you supposed to be staying calm?”

Rodney shot him a sulky frown, but subsided. Briefly.

“It’s the look.” Rodney raised an arm to gesture, and then winced.

Joh scowled. “What look? What are we talking about?”

“You give them that look, the look--” his hand flapped on the floor, weakly echoing his usual gesticulations.

“Oh for god’s sake, this still? Rodney--”

“No, shut up! I figured it out. You get up in their space just a little bit, so they have to look up, or maybe you take them by the shoulders, and then you _Look_ at them and tell them you’ll take care of everything and it’ll all be fine and after that they can’t help themselves.”

“Pretty sure Larrin would disagree.”

“Okay well I don’t know, Larrin’s out of her mind, maybe she just has a kink for...for guys she has trouble beating. Or maybe you did the Look at some point and you don’t remember. You don’t notice when you do it, you just...do it.”

“Jesus, Rodney.” John got up and went to the door again. He scowled at the lock, and then started unbuckling his belt.

“If you’re planning on taking a strap to me, I wouldn’t bother,” Rodney said. “I doubt it would hurt more than the stab wound.”

John glared at him, and then began digging at the lock with the corner of his belt buckle. 

*

“John, I’m cold.”

John didn’t raise his head from between his knees. His belt, broken, lay in the corner where he’d thrown it. The lock plate was scratched to hell, but implacable.

“Yeah, well, I’ll pick us a tropical planet for the next mission.”

“No, I mean really cold.”

John looked up, and then scrambled across the floor. He lay his hand over Rodney’s arm, and then quickly shifted to the side of his head.

“Shit. Shock.” John stripped off his jacket. “Hang on, this is going to hurt.” Kneeling behind Rodney, he took him by the shoulders and hauled him backwards. 

“Ahh! _Fuck! Owwwww!_ ”

When John was done, Rodney was leaning against his chest, the jacket tucked over both of them. Rodney’s breath came in short, sharp gasps. John slipped his arms under Rodney’s armpits and wrapped them carefully over his chest, offering as much warmth as possible. Slowly, Rodney’s breathing evened out, but he was still horribly pale and cold to the touch.

“John?”

“Yeah?”

“Could you um...could you give me the Look?”

“ _What?_ ”

“Well, me you usually just bully until I come up with a solution, but um, I don’t think that’s going to work this time. And um, I’m having trouble believing the whole ‘it’s all gonna be fine’ line and I thought, maybe--” Rodney sighed, small and weak.

John chewed on his lip, staring blankly at the locked door. Then he took a deep breath and slipped one arm loose so that he could put a hand on Rodney’s cheek and tilt his head up until they were face to face, twisted over Rodney’s shoulder.

“It’s going to be fine, Rodney. You got word out; you did beautifully. Now, I’m not going to let you die, and Teyla and Ronon are going to come busting through that door any minute now, and everything’s gonna be fine. I’ve got you. Okay?”

Some of the tension went out of Rodney’s frame, and he sank back further into John’s arms.

“Yeah, okay. Yeah. That’s why they do it.”

*

John sat on the infirmary bed as the new med tech took his blood pressure, and watched Jennifer and her crew work over Rodney. Blood transfusion, liquids, cutting off John’s makeshift bandages. But he’d be okay. Jennifer had said he’d be okay.

Still, it had been harder to mean it, when it had been Rodney. Harder to sell the confidence and control, when the man he relied upon to make everything alright was the one he had to convince.


End file.
